Those were scores of the three games the Princeton Tigers had played this season before taking on Syracuse Wednesday night at the Carrier Dome.

When you watch a game with Princeton involved, you sort of take a deep breath and summon your deepest patience.

Kind of like waiting at the Department of Motor Vehicles.

You know going in it's going to be brutal.

The Tigers were successful at making the pace of this game irritating at times, but Syracuse fought back with a terrific defensive effort and spirited performance from James Southerland to beat the Tigers 73-53.

Dennis Nett/The Post-Standard 2012

"Princeton is a difficult team to play. They’re very patient and they move the ball. They’ve got good ball handlers, good shooters. They shot well. They made some real good shots to keep in the game," Syracuse head coach Jim Boeheim said after the game.

"Princeton does a great job of controlling the tempo. They do a great job of getting it to their shooters. I felt like we did a great job of making them turnover the ball and crashing the boards later in the game. They are a tough team, especially when they have all those shooters out there and they stayed in this game for a long time," SU senior James Southerland said of the Tigers after this one.

Stay in the game the Tigers did for an uncomfortable amount of time.

The Tigers were within six at one point in the second half when a Clay Wilson’s 3-pointer from the corner with 13 minutes, 39 seconds remaining cut Syracuse’s lead down to 45-39.

But a Rakeem Christmas dunk sparked the Orange to an eight-point burst to build the lead back up to 53-39.

Good thing that happened.

The loudest cheers that had been heard in the Carrier Dome at that point were for a marriage proposal on the "kiss cam."

"Princeton is a very good team. They’re going to be in the tournament. Probably win the Ivy League. They’re smart, they move the ball, and they have good shooters.

I thought we did a pretty good job attacking. They change defenses a lot and I thought Michael (Carter-Williams) did a pretty good job of getting the ball to the right people in the right situations.

We weren’t sharp offensively, as sharp as we’d like to be, but James (Southerland) bailed us out early and made a couple big shots in the first half to get us some distance," added Boeheim after the game on the Tigers.

*James Southerland takes center stage after a career-high 22 points on 7-for-11 shooting, including hitting four out of five Syracuse three-pointers vs Princeton.

Southerland stepped it up in the defensive end as well with five steals (all in the first half).

Jim Boeheim didn't have a crack about any family members attending to the box score like he did about Trevor Cooney's six steals against Wagner, but he did manage to get in a quip about Southerland's defensive game.

“Yeah, he ran into some steals, that’s unusual. He’ll try to avoid that next game," Boeheim said.

I asked Southerland in the locker room after the game on his defensive contribution to the win over the Tigers.

He had a more direct answer.

"I feel like it had a lot to do with me staying active. It can't hurt to have a seven foot three wingspan either."

Southerland was "NBA Jam" on fire at times in this game. His confidence was overflowing as he took his shots from different angles beyond the arc.

He also showed deep range. He buried a three from NBA range to give Syracuse a spark with 6:10 left in the first half to put the Orange up 28-14.

His three to put Syracuse up 61-47 was the beginning of the end of Princeton having any thoughts of making this a game down the stretch.

Southerland wasn't just shooting from the outside. He took advantage of chances inside with a terrific follow jam to put SU up 30-16, a great finish of a Baye Keita block to put SU up 56-41, and the exclamation point at the end of the game to put SU up 70-51 and set his new career high in scoring.

If Southerland weren't a senior and on his way out of Syracuse, he may have wanted to throw his hat in the ring with Ashton Broyld, Zach Allen, Charlie Loeb, Terrel Hunt and John Kinder to be Syracuse's quarterback next season.

Southerland made a terrific full-court pass in traffic to Michael Carter-Williams in the first half.

Dennis Nett/The Post-Standard 2012

He also had a momentum changing block of an attempted Princeton dunk about midway through the second half.

I also asked James after the game what the biggest trait he brings to this team is so far this season.

"I would say being a leader and making sure everyone is doing what they need to do. There are some times where we get lost and I'm just making sure everyone calms down and does what they need to do."

Southerland did step up and lead his team on a night fellow senior and anointed team leader, Brandon Triche, was really struggling.

Assistant coach Mike Hopkins told me what he sees as the big steps of improvment in Southerland's game.

"In the first half, he was unbelievable defensively. He had five steals. I thought he was active and did a really good job. That is where he has really improved. Mentally and emotionally, he has a lot of confidence right now. I think his carefree spirit allows him to miss a couple shots and still come out and get hot.

To be that size and to be able to shoot the way he does, He's got those Phil Mickelson hands. So soft. He's just working with a high level of confidence. He works so hard, he and Coach Autry. They work a lot on shooting and different aspects of the game."

If Southerland picks up on the defensive end, like he did in this game, there are some nights he can be the best player on the floor.

If he racks up a few more games like this and can be that kind of sparkplug off the bench, the Big East sixth man of the year award may be within his grasp.

*Michael Carter-Williams flirted with a triple double with 10 points, nine assists, and six rebounds. He added four steals on defense.

He has 20 assists in the last two games.

MCW provided a big spark in the second half when Princeton closed the gap to 45-39. He turned on the jets and opened up plays for Christmas, Triche, Baye Keita, and C.J. Fair that have Syracuse a lead at 53-39 and shut the door on any thoughts of a Princeton comeback.

He earned some high praise from Boeheim after the game.

“I think he’s getting better. You know I think he’s still got a lot of work to do, but he’s playing well and getting the ball in the right places. He’s called a couple great plays out there when we needed him. He set James up for a three. Got two buckets for us in the lane when they pulled within six.

You know he’s playing extremely well. His defense has been really good. I think both Brandon (Triche) and him have played good defense, and Trevor (Cooney). Our guards have played good defensively out front. That’s good,” Boeheim said.

Of those nine assists, my favorite was a really nice touch pass he threw inside to Baye Keita on a bang-bang play to put SU up 51-39.

MCW is the player where you can see the most tangible improvement game-by-game. The raw talent is more than there. Anyone who watches this team for five minutes can see he has more of it than anyone.

Dennis Nett/The Post-Standard 2012

That said, you can't call him this team's best player. Not yet.

But he will undoubtedly have that title at some point this season.

As they said in "Spaceballs,"when will then be now?" When will he be this team's best player.

Soon.

*C.J. Fair shook off a tough start to finish with 12 points, six rebounds, and two steals.

Fair came alive in the second half with a tough drive to the hoop to put SU up 44-31. He muscled in a tough bank shot after a MCW miss at 53-39 and put home a thunder jam to put SU up late 63-50.

He hit four-of-five free throws as well.

*Rakeem Christmas was showing off some new and improved moves and some we know he could display vs the Tigers.

Part of the new was a nice mid-range jumper he stroked early in the game to put SU up 4-0. He also showed off some added athleticism with a really pretty up and under move to start the second half.

He finished five-of-six from the field.

Other than that, it was some of the things you have come to expect from Christmas. Some good moves around the basket, including a thunder jam to put SU up 47-39 and spark a badly needed mini-rally with Princeton hanging in the game at that point.

Christmas seems a lot more comfortable this season, whether at forward or center, and is making the most of his minutes (18 in this game).

*DaJuan Coleman had a better game vs Princeton than on Sunday vs Wagner. Coleman finished with seven points, six rebounds, and three steals. He had five turnovers in the Wagner game, zero in this one vs the Tigers.

Coleman was active early on in hitting an off balance drive to the basket. He added a nice step-back jumper shortly after that to make the score 10-0.

“I feel I’m getting more comfortable every time I get out there. I feel more comfortable even facing up, taking mid-range jump shots – I think I did pretty well, ” Coleman said after the game.

Even as a young player still trying to find his way, Coleman has found a primary mission.

“Every time I step on the court, I want to lead the team in rebounds because I know the points will come.”

*Baye Moussa Keita didn't fill the stat sheet like he did against Wagner, but still made his presence felt in 14 minutes of play.

He made a fantastic block in the second half. Maybe the best one we have seen all year.

On a fast break with just over 6:00 remaining, Princeton's Ian Hummer was streaking towards the basket for a dunk. Keita flew in at the last possible second he could and brushed it away. The play led to a fast break on the other end for James Southerland.

His one basket was a beauty. Baye caught a pass in stride from MCW and layed the ball off the glass in one fluid motion.

Baye Moussa Ketia circa 2011-12 just doesn't make that play.

*Brandon Triche really struggled on the offensive end, but played better on defense in collecting three steals.

*When you play Princeton, the big worry is how they control the flow of the game.

Well, Syracuse threw a monkey wrench into that plan by turning up the intensity on defense and piling up 19 steals on the Tigers. Princeton turned the ball over 24 times total, which led to 25 Syracuse points.

"I thought defensively we played very well. Princeton is a difficult team to play. They’re very patient and they move the ball. They’ve got good ball handlers, good shooters. They shot well. They made some real good shots to keep in the game," said Jim Boeheim.

He added.

"You force Princeton into 24 turnovers, they probably won’t have 24 turnovers in two games this year, the rest of the year. We did a good job defensively and they’re a very good team and it was a good win."

Princeton's best player, Ian Hummer, was harassed all night by SU defenders and committed eight turnovers.